Winning Isn't Everything
by ThEoC
Summary: Nobody really wins the hunger games, despite the Capitol's claim, no matter who you are or where you're from, everyone loses except for them.   Just a series of oneshots I really felt like writing.
1. Chapter 1

District 1- male

It was only me and her; we circled around each other again and again, her brilliant blue eyes were pleading no. I couldn't kill her, the sweet girl from my district, the only one that I could ever love. I clutched my knife tighter, my knuckles growing white, my stomach churning at the thought of my own knife extinguishing the glimmer in those beautiful eyes. I had to though, I volunteered, I was supposed to bring honor and pride, I was supposed to win, I had to, it was my life and love was never allowed into that precarious balance. I snapped out of my thoughts and looked down at the vicious weapon in my grasp, I slammed my eyes shut and thrust, the blade landing into her body. She let out a cry of pain and a scream, I swear my heart stopped as I looked down at her, she was bleeding out; her face was painted with anger and pain. "I'm sorry," I pleaded, but she wouldn't take it, she threw her knife, missing me by only a centimeter. "Bastard!" she screamed through hot tears. "I'm sorry," I tried again, taking her hand. "No," she said, "I'm sorry," her voice was shaking and she sounded like she was having trouble breathing, "I'm sorry that to you winning is everything, Radiant Niteo, I hope you're proud." I just looked at her, was this how she was going to remember me? Tears threatened to fall as I watched her trying to breath, but the tears never fell, they weren't supposed to fall, the only thing I would ever be was heartless, and heartless people don't cry over love that was always doomed. Suddenly, it stops, her eyes glaze over and the pained look on her face melts away. The cannon rang through the arena, it was really over. I knew I was supposed to rejoice, or maybe I was supposed to cry, I didn't really know, so I just stood there. I pressed my hand into her's, her hand was cold and lifeless. "No," I whispered. What had I done? What kind of idiot am I? I killed her and the last thought she would ever have of me was hatred, but I deserved it, I deserved every bit of hatred that she felt towards me. Angrily I stood, letting her limp hand fall from my grasp, I kicked a rock and screamed in frustration. Suddenly I heard the voice of Claudius Templesmith, "Congratulations to this year's victor: Radiant Niteo!" Oh joy, the winner of the games, what an honor.

I wake up screaming "no" once again. My hand searches around and I find that I'm not in that hellhole anymore. No, I'm in my room, in my mansion, in the lovely victor's village. I get it, I am supposed to be the happiest man alive, well I'm not, so get over it. That was a whole year ago and I still remember it like it was yesterday, her face will be forever embedded in my memory, visiting me every night, her words will forever echo in my head. "I hope you're proud." That's what everyone expects: pride. Oh yeah, like I'm so proud I chose glory over her. Maybe I'm just young and stupid, maybe I'll always be stupid. I look at the clock and realize I have to get ready, it's reaping day again and it's my first year as a victor. I can't say I'm happy to be going to another reaping, maybe a year ago I would have, but lately, I've realized some things. There is no one in Panem who can win the hunger games. They always say that one comes out, which is about half true, one comes out, but never ever without sacrifice. I scoff as I imagine the pride filled boy that will march on stage this year. He'll be ready for anything, he knows he will win. A year ago, that was me and look where I am now.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey, so if you're reading this, good for you and thanks a ton. Basically this story is about different victors from the districts, most of them are not going to be canon characters, but I'm not so sure yet. So, this chapter is going to be told a little differently. I hope that you don't hate it! **

District 2- female

I knock on the door in the clean white facility. I visit her every year on the same day, just to see how she is doing. It's been five years since she won and she still has to live in the asylum, it was something about her being a "menace to society" but quite frankly, I don't think the escorts wanted her to be a mentor for one reason: they fear her. This whole "menace to society" is just a cover story, I don't think that district 2 minds her living amongst us, she's a victor, a hero, and the Capitol feels the same- they just don't want their heads chopped off. You see, her games were quite… interesting and it was all thanks to her. I was 12 that year, my first chance at being reaped, though I had only been training for a couple years, I wasn't worried about the reaping, I knew that I didn't have a chance of going to the games, someone would probably volunteer before I even made it to the stage. I also knew that whoever that girl was would certainly lose the hunger games. My brother was 18 and we all knew that he was going to volunteer, even the other boys knew that he was the strongest, he could beat a man twice his size and kill anyone in seconds, that was why I knew that anyone up against him would never stand a chance.

That year, the escort called the name Janell Libra. Funny enough, that was me, I almost started laughing as I made my way through the crowd, the irony, a 12 year old chosen on her first year. I was about half way up the steps when a voice rang loud and clear. "I volunteer!" it said, I was right. I simply walked back to my place as the girl who had volunteered ascended the stage. She was a rather small girl who looked like she couldn't be more than 14, she had messy black hair and piercing blue eyes, she was rather scrawny too, I groaned, I would have a better chance than that pipsqueak! However, I was dead wrong, the girl killed well, without even the slightest bit of remorse and I watched in anticipation as she steadily grew more and more detached. She would sing before a kill, dance around dead bodies, and stab people even after their canons had blown. She turned out to be one of the most bloodthirsty tributes that the game had ever seen, claiming roughly half of the kills. Finally, it came down to the final three: Nex Libra, Zaria Tiltrin, and Circuit Herrin- a 15-year-old from district 3. Circuit, like many district 3 tributes, was skilled with electric wires, and that's how she took out the seemingly invincible Nex Libra. I cringed in disgust as I watched him become entangled in electric wires and then be shocked until death. Circuit freaked out, her hazel eyes went wide and she jumped out of the tree she was hiding in, you could tell that she wanted to get away as quickly as possible, she ran and ran, stopping only when she was a good distance away from the trap she had set, she crumpled to her knees and barfed, tears streaming down her cheeks. Suddenly, a spear flew past her ears, embedding itself in a rock near her head. "Hello Circuit," an eerie voice filled the ears of every viewer, "I hear you've been killing again, how does it feel?" This sent another stream of tears down Circuit's face. Everyone watched as Zaria slipped out of the shadows, twirling a bloody knife in her hands. My heart fluttered at the thought of my brother being avenged. Circuit looked like she was about to run when Zaria pounced on her, effectively pinning the weak girl to the ground. "So, do you have anyone at home?" Zaria asked casually, while staring at Circuit. "No?" Zaria said, answering the question that Circuit had failed to reply to. "Good, then they won't be able to watch this," Zaria spoke slowly and evilly, a grin spreading across her grimy face. First Zaria cut out the eyeballs and then around the face, cackling with glee as she did so. When her work was done, you couldn't make out what Circuit had previously looked like, but that wasn't the worst of it. Zaria bent in and licked the blood on the now dead girl's face. She got off as soon as she was satisfied, she skipped around Circuit, screaming and hooting all the way, she threw just about every weapon she had at the lifeless girl and didn't stop until the hovercraft came to take her away.

I brushed away the memory and went on to open the door to the room. Zaria has what looks like a dead rat in her hands, she's using a knife to skin it, she's singing an odd song, something about the death of a family, it's quite haunting really. It takes a few seconds, but she finally looks up at me. "Circuit?" she says, her voice laced with confusion. "No," she said, "I killed you." But she doesn't stop staring at me. I don't think that I look like Circuit. Then without a second's notice, she springs at me, the dead animal momentarily forgotten and now lying on the floor. I side step, but that doesn't stop her from chasing me all around the room, the knife still in her hands. "I'm going to kill you Circuit," she sings cheerfully. I scream at her, "I am not Circuit!" She just continues to chase me around, "what do you mean you're not Circuit? Why else would you be here?" She must be delirious, I think. I turn around and trip her, which turns out to be a horrible idea. "Why you little bitch! DIE!" she screams, thrusting the knife into my right leg. A searing pain shoots through my body and I scream in aggravation, "I am not Circuit! This is not the hunger games!" She is about to attack again when the door bursts open and to men barge in, stun guns at the ready. They shoot Zaria and her body hits the floor, she is foaming at the mouth. "Is she…" I start, but one of the men answers my question before I can finish. "No," he says, "just unconscious, this happens a lot, especially with this one." I look down at Zaria, her wild blue eyes are still wide open and she is barely breathing. This is the girl who won the hunger games, she was supposedly a victor, set for glory and fortune, but not really, she was a victor, yes, but she was forever cursed to live in the hunger games, forever cursed to be hunting a girl who had died five years ago. She may be a victor, but she certainly did not win, just like I had always believed.

**So there! That was exceedingly fun to write and I hope that you enjoyed reading it. **


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